Shadow Seer [18+]

~ Nine ~

Though she was outside, in the glorious sunshine, the air felt as though it had been sucked from around her. Sanaa's breath caught as she processed Amir's words. The blood rushed from her face, her sun kissed skin turning sallow as she looked into the eyes of the man before her, praying to find some hint of a lie.

"You did... what?" She shouldn't have been surprised, she knew what Amir was capable of but something so heinous had never crossed her mind. That he murdered innocent strangers was one thing but that he would take the life of those he knew and presumably loved was quite another.

Amir stood there, the personification of darkness despite the glorious sun overhead. He looked more imposing than anyone had the right to be and it unnerved her. Slowly, Sanaa stood on unsteady legs, her palms clammy and breath short as she attempted to back away from him. She was afraid of him, she realised and in that realisation, she understood that before this moment, she never had been. She'd always known his power, what he was capable of, but she had never feared for her own safety around him. She'd never seriously considered that Amir could hurt her. Until now.

Sanaa continued to retreat, her steps fearful and unsure, but Amir advanced, swallowing the space between them with two quick strides. Sanaa trembled under his intense gaze, his head now blocking out all light that his face was now cased in shadow. He looked all the more villainous and her heart beat furiously behind her ribs.

"S-stay away from me," Sanaa stuttered, terrified as the backs of her heels hit against a pool of water behind her. She let her guard down for the moment, looking down to see where she'd stepped, but when she looked up again, Amir was on her. Languidly, he reached out and clasped his hand around her throat.

Sanaa's hands instinctively flew up to his wrist, clasping it to try and pull from around her neck but Amir held firm. Her breath quickened as terror seeped into her bones, the danger she was in becoming obtrusively clear. Amir's grip tightened around her that she gasped, her plump lips parting with the motion. Amir's eyes darted to her lips as the tip of his tongue appeared between his own lips before disappearing. His eyes lifted to hers and narrowed, the jade green now alight with fury.

This was the killer she'd heard of.

This was the Dark Prince.

As if her fear had awakened them, tendrils of dark smoke coiled around Amir's elbow, up his arm then around his hand. In the next moment, they twisted around Sanaa's throat, replacing his hand as he took a step back. It wasn't far enough. His scent overwhelmed her, their chests brushing against each other in a way that had every sense screaming. She could feel the coarse fabric of his clothing against her too tight breasts. She could hear his rapid breathing despite his obvious effort to control it. She could taste him on her breath, the very heat of him colliding with her tongue that had her panting.

"I killed them," he repeated. "This power, this... darkness inside me, killed them."

Sanaa was unable to draw a breath from beneath the grip his shadows had on her. She shook, terror taking over all rational sense as she watched him, watching her with no obvious intent to release her.

"I'm a monster," he said. "That's as real as it gets."

Sanaa fell to the ground as the shadows let go of her. She hadn't realised he'd even lifted her off the ground until she knelt there, stuttering and coughing, trying desperately to get life giving air back into her lungs. She looked up at him, eyes stinging with tears, terrified to move but unable to look away. As Sanaa watched Amir, she saw the flames of his anger flicker out of his eyes and the darkest pit of desolation replaced it. She could think of no other way to describe the emptiness that screamed from behind his eyes. She'd seen that look many times when looking in the mirror. Slowly, Sanaa got to her feet, her eyes never leaving Amir's as he continued to glare down at her.